On the whole, I did enjoy reading this poem, although I found it very difficult to read. I've heard before that it's very hard to comprehend the firstOn the whole, I did enjoy reading this poem, although I found it very difficult to read. I've heard before that it's very hard to comprehend the first time around, and I would have to agree. Although I did find it humorous, I'm not sure that I pciked up on all of the jokes and satire, even with the footnotes. I think a better knowledge and understanding of British cultural history would have helped me.

I think I only really managed to read the surface of the poem, but anythign which I didn't pick up on was not because of Pope but because of my understanding of it....more

I had to read this for a class so I've been reading a few pages before bed at night. I've had expereince with The Aeneid before, as I took Latin in hiI had to read this for a class so I've been reading a few pages before bed at night. I've had expereince with The Aeneid before, as I took Latin in high school and translated parts of it then.

I found John Dryden's translation very interesting to read. The rhyming couplets make it lyrical and smooth, and contribute to what a lot of academics would refer to as elevated diction (I wrote an essay about this in Pope's translation of the Iliad). There's also of course the question of how such a strong poetic style influences the accuracy of the translation, and I really don't know. I remember using Allen Mandelbaum's translation in high school, and I'd like to have another look at that. On the whole, however, I really enjoyed reading this and am gald that I did....more